Cost of Living Comparison Between South Africa and Ethiopia Cost of Living Comparison Between South Africa and Ethiopia

🙂 Solo nomad: South Africa is 21% cheaper than Ethiopia without rent, and 14.1% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: South Africa is 15.4% cheaper than Ethiopia without rent, and 17.1% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
South Africa
Ethiopia
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$9.05 R 161
$4.33 ETB 582
109.01%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$38.84 R 691
$35.39 ETB 4,760
9.75%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$4.9 R 87.1
$6.49 ETB 873
-24.50%
Cappuccino
$1.98 R 35.28
$1.16 ETB 156
70.69%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.96 R 17.06
$0.59 ETB 79.7
62.71%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.75 R 13.31
$0.43 ETB 58.1
74.42%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.18 R 38.72
$0.97 ETB 131
124.74%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.54 R 45.1
$1.96 ETB 263
29.59%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
South Africa
Ethiopia
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.1 R 19.58
$1.43 ETB 192
-23.08%
White Bread (500g)
$1.03 R 18.32
$1.27 ETB 171
-18.90%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.56 R 27.71
$1.67 ETB 225
-6.59%
Eggs
$2.25 R 39.93
$2.38 ETB 320
-5.46%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.67 R 136
$7.06 ETB 949
8.64%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$4.62 R 82.2
$12.71 ETB 1,710
-63.65%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$6.86 R 122
$13.13 ETB 1,767
-47.75%
Apples (1kg)
$1.58 R 28.02
$6.43 ETB 866
-75.43%
Banana (1kg)
$1.42 R 25.3
$0.97 ETB 131
46.39%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.44 R 25.58
$2.3 ETB 310
-37.39%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.49 R 26.5
$0.87 ETB 118
71.26%
Potato (1kg)
$1.25 R 22.16
$0.64 ETB 85.7
95.31%
Onion (1kg)
$1.34 R 23.81
$1.84 ETB 248
-27.17%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.09 R 19.31
$0.7 ETB 93.6
55.71%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.96 R 17.15
$0.61 ETB 82.5
57.38%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.9 R 51.6
$3.93 ETB 529
-26.21%
Wine (Bottle)
$5.07 R 90.3
$6.08 ETB 818
-16.61%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.38 R 24.49
$0.85 ETB 114
62.35%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.68 R 29.79
$1.84 ETB 248
-8.70%
🚌 Getting Around
South Africa
Ethiopia
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.71 R 30.47
$0.27 ETB 35.98
533.33%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$45.01 R 801
$12.57 ETB 1,691
258.07%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.1 R 19.61
$1.44 ETB 193
-23.61%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.09 R 19.41
$0.31 ETB 42.29
251.61%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$4.8 R 85.3
$2.02 ETB 271
137.62%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 R 23.23
$1.26 ETB 169
3.97%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21K R 374.2K
$53.3K ETB 7.2M
-60.52%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.7K R 421.3K
$54.8K ETB 7.4M
-56.76%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
South Africa
Ethiopia
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$113 R 2,009
$134 ETB 18K
-15.79%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$33.11 R 589
$12.36 ETB 1,662
167.88%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$41.49 R 738
$160 ETB 21.5K
-74.00%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
South Africa
Ethiopia
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$31.69 R 564
$62.1 ETB 8,352
-48.97%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$9.45 R 168
$36.73 ETB 4,940
-74.27%
Cinema Ticket
$6.7 R 119
$5.01 ETB 674
33.73%
🧸 Childcare & Education
South Africa
Ethiopia
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$186 R 3,303
$77.6 ETB 10.4K
139.23%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$4,336 R 77.1K
$40.8K ETB 5.5M
-89.38%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
South Africa
Ethiopia
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$48.56 R 864
$48.01 ETB 6,458
1.15%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$30.74 R 547
$75.5 ETB 10.1K
-59.26%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$92 R 1,636
$98.9 ETB 13.3K
-6.97%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$79.6 R 1,415
$117 ETB 15.7K
-31.86%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
South Africa
Ethiopia
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$442 R 7,860
$693 ETB 93.2K
-36.25%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$370 R 6,579
$378 ETB 50.8K
-2.12%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$880 R 15.7K
$1,357 ETB 182.6K
-35.13%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$724 R 12.9K
$886 ETB 119.2K
-18.35%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$1,021 R 18.2K
$2,359 ETB 317.2K
-56.72%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$803 R 14.3K
$1,629 ETB 219K
-50.67%
💵 Salaries & Financials
South Africa
Ethiopia
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,406 R 25K
$201 ETB 27.1K
598.15%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
11.55
17
-32.06%

Citycost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for South Africa: October 29, 2025

Last update for Ethiopia: October 29, 2025

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